A NEW PARTY

Hokitika Guardian, 10 December 1932, Page 6

A NEW PARTY

SEDDON ’ LIBER ALS

VIEWS ON MANY 1 QUESTIONS,

A new political Party, named the Seddon Liberal Party, is announced in a pamphlet, which has issued from Auckland, and which sets out the news of the organisations on a number of important questions. The pamphlet attacks the Coalition Party, stating that by its- taxation and levy policy it “pauperising the work ng classes and the middle and professional classes, us well -as bankrupting the trade, f people and importing class.”, Proceeding, it states that to benefit a few South Island wheat-growers a wheat bonus was imposed, causing .an annual loss of £1,250,00(1 to the “already pauperised people of this country, on bread, their staple food. 1 Such action, in our opinion, while children ar crying for bread, amounts to cold-blooded callousness.”

MR SEDDON’S APPEAL. “The time has long since come (continues the pamphlet) for. a Party amalgamating the middle class and working clats, along the lines of Seddonisin, keeping in mind the prophetic dying words of that great statesman. ‘lt has taken over 50 yeans to rescue the Legislative machine from the Tory class, with bountiful blessings for the whole people. Take heed 1-st you divide yourselves into warring camps, or they will rescue that machine from the mass of the people, and undo all our good work in the course of a year or two.’ ”

Dealing with land settlement, the manifesto urges that a thorough investigation of all mortgages of the Advances to Settlers Department and the Public Trust Office he made and that all otheii advancements beyend the usable value of such lands be reduced accordingly to comply with loans under the Trustee Act, 1908 .

It suggests that to wipe out the main cause of unemployment in the Dominion during the next three years a definite policy be inaugurated to put '25,000 new settlers on the soil.

PARLIAMENTARY REFORM. The Party believes that the number in the House of Representatives should be reduced to 50 and that tuere should be an elective’Tipper House, of twelve members elected by preferential voting. It advocates that Royal Commissions and boards of inquiry be reduced to a minimum and employed only on rare occasions. It is suggested that no Minister cf the Crown, outside the Prime Minister, shall receive'more than £IOO3 per annum, with travelling and other expenses limited to £SOO per annum, and that the Leader of the Opposition should receive £750 per annum and a limit of £SOO per annum for expenses, '•' "*• LICENSED HOUSES.

It is proposed that a redistribution be made cf licensed houses to suit the requirements of the p'pul Tion and that tied , and managed houses Ve r estricted “so ns to keep the evil influences of wholesalers from affecting the retail trade to thet detriment of the well-being of the whole population.’-’ It- is also suggested that licensing election bo held once in. every nne years. The secretary of the party is Air Edward H. Sutherland, Victoria Insurance Buildings, Shortland street, Auckland.